The use of various promotional enhancements for increasing the sales of particular products is commonly employed by manufacturers or distributors for a wide variety of products. These promotional enhancements take on a variety of forms, all for the purpose of increasing product sales.
One of the promotional methods often employed by manufactures of products is to include a prize in either every product container or in selected containers. Although this promotional method has been successful with companies who distribute products, promotional concepts of this nature have been incapable of being employed in the sale or distribution of products which are placed in the container at the time of sale. Products of this nature are typically food products, such as beverages, ice cream, pop corn, and fast foods which are wrapped or placed in containers at the time of purchase.
In order to attain greater market share and sales increases in the food service industry, various promotional techniques have been developed. Typically, contests are conducted in which coupons are given out to customers in an attempt to increase overall product sales and attract customers to patronize the food distribution outlet or chain. In addition, in order to promote certain product sales, promotional contests or games have been employed which focus on a particular product, such as beverage purchases, wherein labels are affixed to the outside surface of drinking cups.
In order to achieve greater market share and/or product sales, various entities in the food service industry have attempted to find increasingly unique promotional techniques which generate added sales for their particular products. In doing so, the premium or prize type promotions have progressed from inexpensive give-aways, which are handed out to customers with any purchase, to expensive prize awards which are won by collecting numerous components of a final multi-part coupon or ticket. In this way, numerous repeated visits to the food provider are required before any individual would be able to win a valuable prize.
Recently, a unique marketing approach was developed wherein actual cash awards are secretly retained in food product containers for wet or moist products such as soda, water, beer, milk, yogurt and the like. This invention is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,911,321, 5,056,659, and 5,056,681. A nation-wide promotion was conducted employing the teaching of these patents and overwhelming consumer excitement and commercial success was realized.
Prior to the present invention, however, the food service industry was incapable of enjoying the substantial commercial success realized by employing the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,911,321, 5,056,659, and 5,056,681 due to the on-site delivery of food products in holders or containers as opposed to pre-packaged containers, upon which the constructions detailed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,911,321, 5,056,659, and 5,056,681 are based. As a result of this inability, the food service industry has been unable to enjoy an overwhelmingly effective and highly successful product sales incentive which generates substantial interest, customer identification, and increased purchases.
Consequently, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a prize delivery system for use in the food service industry in connection with the sale of any desired food products, particularly food products prepared and delivered on site.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a prize delivery system having the characteristic features described above which comprises a holder or instrument for use with food products which is identical in all respects to typical holders or instruments, but which secretly contains a hidden prize award.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a prize delivery system having the characteristic features described wherein the prize bearing holder, or instrument is completely indistinguishable from non-prize bearing holders, or instruments, thereby preventing advance discovery of the existence of prize award contained therein.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a prize delivery system having the characteristic features described above wherein the prize bearing holder, or instrument is indistinguishable from non-prize containers, holders, and instruments such that both can be distributed to retain outlets with complete assurance that the prize bearing holder, or instruments cannot be detected when compared to non-prize bearing holders, or instruments.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a prize delivery system having the characteristic features described above which enables a highly effective promotional technique to be employed in the food service industry for substantially increasing sales while directly awarding the purchasing public with prize awards that are completely randomly distributed.
Other and more specific objects will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.